


Criminal Minds and Control Freaks

by mcgarrygirl78



Series: Thicker than Water [4]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Alternate Universe, Drama, F/M, Family, Friendship, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-10
Updated: 2014-10-10
Packaged: 2018-02-20 14:24:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2432039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You seem mad.  Are you mad?  What's the matter?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Criminal Minds and Control Freaks

“What's your name, kid?”

“JJ.”

“I need a whole name, first and last.”

“Really,” JJ crossed her arms. “I just prefer JJ.”

“Well I've never seen you around here, JJ, so I'm willing to let you off this time with a warning.”

“No shit?” her blue eyes lit up as she hopped out of the chair and walked toward the door. “That’s awesome cuz…”

“Not so fast.” He held out his arm. “I need a grownup to come and pick you up.”

“Aww man, are you serious? That is so not a warning, dude.”

“Give me your home phone number, JJ. I'm calling your parents.”

“I'm an orphan.” She replied. “Honest to God, I am.”

“You have to live somewhere. You're too damn clean to be a street kid. Give me a grownup’s telephone number or I’ll be forced to call the police and social services.”

JJ wasn’t going to deal with that. She didn’t want to end up in Juvie Hall or some group home. She sighed, sitting back in the chair and recited the first number that came to her mind. He told her, told all of them, to call if they needed anything. She needed him something fierce right now.

“Whose number is this?” Rent-A-Cop asked, picking up the office phone.

“My Uncle Dave; he looks after me.”

“What's Uncle Dave’s last name?”

“Rossi.”

He nodded, dialing the number.

“Hello.” A woman answered the phone.

“Is Dave Rossi there please?”

“He stepped out. This is his wife, is there something I can help you with?” Erin asked.

“Yes. We have your niece JJ down here. We caught her shoplifting.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“No. She swears she’s an orphan but if a family member doesn’t come to pick her up I’ll be forced to call the police and social services.”

“You don’t have to do that…I'm on my way. What did she steal?”

“I'm calling from Sam Goody in Union Station. She stole about $60 worth of compact discs.”

Erin sighed, running her hands through her blonde hair.

“I’ll be there in 20 minutes. Please don’t call the police; I’ll be right there.”

“Alright. Thank you.”

“Thank you.”

Erin hung up the phone. She went upstairs for her purse and then scribbled a note for Dave that she left on the refrigerator. ‘ _Your niece JJ was caught stealing. I'm going to bail her out. Be back soon. Love you, Erin_.’

“She’s on her way.” Rent-A-Cop told JJ.

“She who?” her heart dropped into her beat up sneakers. This was not good; this was superbad.

“Your Aunt.”

“Sabertooth.” JJ muttered. What had she done in a past life to deserve this? She was never, ever stealing again.

***

The ride home was dreadfully long. Erin had even turned off the radio…she wanted JJ to suffer in silence. She drove the scenic route so it took almost 45 minutes to get to their Palisades neighborhood. She would occasionally glance at the girl. To her credit she was holding up pretty well. She didn’t look scared, angry, or resigned; her face was neutral. Actually, her face was blank.

Erin didn't know a lot about Jennifer Jareau. She knew enough, had access to her records. She knew her sister Colleen was murdered when JJ was eight. A year and a half later, her father killed her mother and then himself. JJ was placed with an Aunt and Uncle in a town called Mount Lebanon, Pennsylvania but she ran away after four months there.

She fell off the radar until Hotch found her in the subway station. Erin knew she JJ was tough as nails and badass to boot. She didn’t seem to fear anything. At the same time she was just 12 years old. No little girl should have to be so badass. Dave always said JJ and Derek reminded him the most of himself growing up on Long Island.

At a red light, Erin looked at JJ. She had her arms crossed. Her steel-eyed gaze was straight ahead. She wanted to say something to her but the car was not an appropriate place for a showdown. Erin kept driving; it was time to get her home.

***

Hotch walked over to the door when he heard the knock. He tried to control his scowl when he saw Erin Strauss through the peephole. What was she doing there? She wasn’t supposed to just show up without calling. His disdain turned to concern when he saw she had JJ with her. She’d left about an hour ago to meet some girls from school for a movie at Union Station.

“Hi.” He opened the door.

“Where is Jason?” She said instead of hello.

“Jason! Erin Strauss is here!”

“Erin?” Jason came out of his room. “Is everything alright?”

“No, its not. I got a call from Sam Goody at Union Station. Apparently Jennifer was picked up for shoplifting.”

“What?” Jason and Hotch both looked at JJ. She stood there, staring at her shoes with her arms crossed.

“What's this about, JJ?” Jason asked.

“Its no big deal…it was just dumb.” She replied.

“It is a…”

“No big deal?” Erin cut him off. “So you think its OK to steal? You think its no big deal? Someone gives you a roof over your head, clothes on your back, and food in your mouth and that’s how you repay them? Juvenile delinquents steal, but you say it’s no big deal. Really? People have made sacrifices for you, young lady. Jason has made sacrifices.”

“Well I never asked you for jack shit in the first place.” JJ shot back.

“JJ!” Jason snapped.

“Oh no, let her talk. Let her dig herself into a deeper hole. Jason is an emancipated teenager but you are not. Do you know what kind of attention your little stunt will bring to him and his home?”

“Erin,” Jason held up his hand. “I can handle this.”

“If you want to destroy your life, go right ahead; I won't stop you.” Erin went on. “But do you even care about the people who love you?”

“You don’t love me. You don’t care about any of us! You just have to be the boss of everything…you're a control freak!”

“JJ, stop it!”

“Are you finished, little girl? Did that make you feel better? How good will you feel when your shenanigans grab the attention of social services? They’ll come here, split everyone up, and send them to foster homes. Is that worth your precious stolen CDs?”

“Erin, stop it now!” Jason spoke through clenched teeth. “JJ, go to your room. Please.”

“Screw you, Sabertooth!” JJ spat at Erin before running and slamming the bedroom door.

The silence was deafening; the echo still lingered in the air. Jason looked at Erin with hard brown eyes.

“Are you happy now?” he asked. “Was all of that necessary?”

“You're upset with me? You’ve got to be kidding me…I just bailed her out. She was caught shoplifting today. Who knows what else she may have done in the past.”

“You didn’t have to say those things to her. Tough love goes a long way.”

“Oh please. The little girl needs discipline, plain and simple.”

“Erin, just stop it.” He sighed. “It’s my job to give JJ discipline and I do it my way. Sit down; I’ll go and talk to her.”

“Fine.” She sat down on the lumpy couch, crossing her legs.

Jason walked down the hall. Hotch went back to the chair by the window and his book. He was halfway through _The Time Machine_. Suddenly the key turned in the lock and everyone else came in. Derek, Emily, Penelope, and Spencer were sipping milkshakes. Emily handed Hotch his black and white.

“Thanks.” He mumbled.

“What the hell is she doing here?” Emily whispered.

“JJ’s in trouble…we’ll talk when she leaves.” He spoke without moving his lips.

Emily nodded, sitting on the arm of the chair by his dangling feet. Penelope grinned as she sat next to Erin on the couch.

“Hey Erin!”

“Hello Penelope.”

“Whatcha doin here? Where’s Uncle Dave?”

“He's at work in Quantico.”

“Why aren’t you at work?” she asked.

“I have the day off.”

“You seem mad. Are you mad? What's the matter?”

Erin looked at her. The little girl was happy all the time. She didn’t think she’d ever seen Penelope Garcia frown. No point in upsetting her now.

“I'm really, truly fine, Penelope. I'm just waiting for Jason to come back so we can talk.”

“Where did Jason go?” she asked.

“What are you, the police?” Derek asked. “Stop asking so many questions, baby girl. Strauss is used to being the interrogator.”

They all laughed and Penelope looked at her again.

“I'm sorry.” She said.

“It’s alright.”

“Want some of my milkshake? It might make you feel better; its strawberry.”

“No thank you.”

“OK.”

She just sat beside her, sipping away. Erin looked toward the hallway. What was going on in there?

000

“Talk to me.” Jason sat down on the bottom bunk with JJ.

“Look, if I'm just gonna be a troublemaker then I’ll bail. I'm cool with that; I’ll be fine.”

“Well I'm not cool with that. You’re not going anywhere. Just tell me what happened today.”

“Was Sabertooth for real, Jason? Can social services put us in foster homes?”

“JJ,” he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. He always had to be gentle and cautious when touching JJ. “Forget about all of that and tell me what happened.”

“I did something dumb. I shoplifted from Sam Goody.”

“Why did you do it?”

JJ just shrugged. She looked at Jason and knew he wasn’t buying it. Dammit, she hated this heart to heart confessional shit. She took a deep breath.

“Melissa Grover was bragging about it at school. She said it was easy at pie. You don’t know this girl, Gideon, she's an idiot. If she could steal from that place then I could probably take the whole kitchen sink.”

“But why would you want to steal? I know we don’t have much…”

“Man, Gideon, you give me everything. Here I am just some random kid and you totally take care of me and stuff. It wasn’t that, for real it wasn’t.”

“So what was it?” Jason asked.

“Well, I wanted to get some CDs for the new Discman Dave bought me a couple of weeks ago. I figured if Idiot Girl got away with it then I would too. I swear I wasn’t gonna make a habit out of it. I just thought it would be a cakewalk. I told you it was stupid.”

“How did Erin get involved?”

“The Rent-A-Cop dude said he would let me off with a warning if I called a family member to come and pick me up. I knew I couldn’t call you. You're emancipated but that might’ve brought you trouble. I swear to Christ I'm never gonna bring you trouble. So I gave them Dave’s number…thought he’d give me a lecture but keep my secret. Erin answered the phone."

“Ahh.” He nodded.

“You're pissed at me, aren’t you?” she asked.

“No, but I am disappointed. You know what, we all do stupid things. It’s better to do them now in our childhoods than later. Stealing is unacceptable. It’s a crime and you could’ve gotten in a lot of trouble.

“It’s also a bad influence on Penelope and Spencer. I know you care about them and don’t want them to look down on you or to follow your bad habits. The way you talked to Erin was also unacceptable. You have to apologize.”

“She totally rubs me the wrong way.” JJ shivered. “She reminds me too much of my Aunt. It has to be her way or the highway. She’s never done anything for me.”

“You know that’s not true JJ.” Jason replied. “She got her friend to access all of your records. She got you into school and signed up for medical care. She and Dave gave us money for school clothes. They help supplement the income from my parents’ insurance so we can stay afloat. Yes, I can agree that she's not the easiest person to get to know or get along with. She is very set in her ways. You're only twelve and you're pretty set in yours as well. Still, she could’ve fed you to the sharks today. Instead she played the role of your Aunt and got you out of there.”

“So I have to apologize?” JJ asked.

“Absolutely.” He nodded. “And if you can't find the sincerity in your heart, you need to give an Academy Award-winning performance.”

“I can do that.”

“Now, there's one more thing we need to discuss. You're on punishment.”

“I'm ready to take it like a man.”

“You're on punishment for two weeks. That means no TV, no music, and no games. You're on dish duty every night except the weekends. Home and school is it for you. You're also on munchkin duty when we have things to do.”

“No music? Can we nego…?”

“No.” Jason’s tone was firm. “I want the Discman and the Walkman. I’ll be unplugging the radio.”

“Harsh.” JJ got up, grabbing both of them from the top drawer. She handed them to Jason. “Let’s get this apology out of the way.”

“JJ, if you ever shoplift again…” Jason sighed. He couldn’t bring himself to threaten her. Threats were not the way he did things. JJ had been through enough…she didn’t need that over her head. “I don’t want you to end up in Juvie Hall. You're family and you belong here with us. You have to stay out of trouble. You're one of the smartest kids I know. Do well in school and you can do anything you want with your life.”

“I want to be in the FBI like Uncle Dave.” She said. “They get guns and can kick ass.”

“People with criminal records aren’t welcome in the FBI. That should be enough incentive for you to stay on the straight and narrow. I'm always gonna take care of you but you gotta help me out.”

“I know. I promise Jason, no more dumb stuff.”

“Pinky swear.” Jason held out his pinky.

JJ did it and Jason gave her a one-arm hug. Then they went back out into the living room. The whole family was drinking milkshakes.

“We got you guys chocolate.” Spencer said. “They're in the freezer.”

“Thank you.” Jason replied. “Guys, JJ and I need to talk to Erin alone. Could you go into my bedroom please?”

They nodded, heading down the hall. Penelope lingered some but Derek came and pulled her toward the bedroom. Erin stood from the couch. JJ took a deep breath; this might be one of the hardest things she’d ever done.

“I'm sorry I whaled on you. I can get really angry sometimes and yell before I think. We don’t have to be best friends or anything but I'm supposed to show you respect. You and Uncle Dave have really been there for Jason, for us as a whole family, and you saved my ass today. So,” JJ stuck out her hand. “I apologize.”

“Apology accepted, Jennifer.” Erin shook her hand. “I really hope we don’t meet in this place ever again.”

“Me too. You'll be happy to know I'm on punishment now.”

“That doesn’t make me happy. What will make me happy is if you never do this again.”

“Yeah.” JJ nodded. “I won't.”

“Thank you JJ.” Jason said. “Back to your room now.”

“Can I have my milkshake?” She asked.

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

JJ grabbed her milkshake and went back to her bedroom. Jason looked at Erin.

“I'm sorry you got involved in this.” He said.

“Better me than you. I know she was calling Dave because she wanted to get off the hook. He may have let her…he has a soft spot for you guys. I still believe that kids need discipline.”

“I do discipline them. I just do it my way. We’re alright here; JJ and I had a long talk.”

“She’s on punishment, huh?”

“Two weeks with no TV or music. All she’ll do is go to school and look after Penelope and Spencer. She's also on dish duty.”

“Hmm…not bad.” Erin nodded. “Jason, I have faith in what you're doing. If I didn’t then I wouldn’t help you. I just worry sometimes that you're in over your head.”

“I'm not. I'm also not alone. Emily and Hotch help with the littler kids and Morgan is great. Not to mention the things you and Dave do. We’re grateful to you for the help and the caring. We’re fine though, I'm fine. Honestly, if I weren't I would discuss it with you. Please don’t worry.”

“Of course I'm going to worry. I love you.”

“I love you too.” He replied.

“Alright, well I'm going home.” Erin walked toward the door and Jason followed. “Jennifer’s apology was very well done. Did it hurt her much?”

“I can't really say. I told her she had to do it and why. She understood.”

“Sabertooth huh? That’s a good one.”

“Erin…”

“Oh, it doesn’t bother me.” She flagged away the notion.

“Really?” Jason raised an eyebrow.

“Of course not. I know I'm not well liked. I have to live my life my way, Jason. It’s not satisfactory to everyone. Did JJ come up with that one?”

He didn’t say anything but she could tell from the look on his face that she had indeed. She knew Jennifer was a very impressive girl. She leaned to kiss his cheek.

“Have a good night, sweet boy.”

“I will. Say hello to Dave.”

“Will do.”

“Drive safely.” Jason said.

“Goodnight, Jason.”

***

The apartment was crowded, it was always crowded, so Jason and Emily went for a walk later in the evening after dinner. Morgan was playing dominoes with Spencer and Penelope. Hotch was still reading his book; Saturdays were the only day he really got to read for pleasure. JJ was in her room on punishment. She was writing when Jason checked on her before they left.

“Did you talk to JJ?” he asked Emily.

“Mmm hmm.”

“You gonna share?”

“It was just girl talk, Jason. You know if it was something important then I would’ve already told you. I have JJ’s confidence…I don’t share information unless it’s important to her safety. You can't get someone to trust you if you just run off at the mouth all the time.”

“Do you think this is the first time she ever shoplifted?”

“Probably. She’s not angry about what happened to her. She’s embarrassed mostly. I don’t think she's gonna be making a habit out of it.”

“She really went off on Erin.” He said.

“I have to admit I wish I’d been there to see it. Hotch’s reenactment at the dinner table was compelling but surely didn’t do it justice.”

“You guys shouldn’t make fun.”

“Sometimes it’s too easy.”

Jason smiled despite himself. He took Emily’s hand, sliding his fingers through hers. She leaned her shoulder on his. It had been a while since they took their walk. School had been keeping them both busy. Jason was actually getting ready to graduate.

In two weeks she would be escorting him on the senior prom. Emily was so excited; she got breathless whenever she thought about it. The only formal dances she’d been to was from behind the curtains at her parents’ fancy cocktail parties. They would have cellists and once even had a torch singer.

Emily would just watch the people dance and mingle thinking about how awesome it would be when a boy finally offered his hand to her. It never happened. Now it would happen with the most amazing boy she’d ever met. She could hardly believe her luck.

“What are you thinking about?” Jason asked. “You've got the dreamiest look on your face.”

“It’s surely not my Arabic test on Monday.” Emily replied.

“Are you ready for it?”

“Yeah, I think so. I don’t know what I was thinking taking the advanced class but I'm doing alright.”

“What about your study partner?”

“I don’t have one right now. Don’t worry about me, Jason, I'm fine. My grades are excellent.”

“You are one of the smartest girls I know.”

“One of?” Emily raised an eyebrow.

“I know she’s just ten but Penelope might have you beat.”

Emily nodded, not finding any room to argue with that. She held his hand tighter.

“We come on these walks to relax. I want you to relax, Jason Gideon. Today was a little crazy but its over. It’s over and tomorrow is another day. Its Sunday…you know what that means.”

“Pancakes.” Jason replied.

“Yes, pancakes. And there's no such thing as a bad mood when pancakes are being consumed.”

“You know there's also no such thing as a bad mood when you kiss me.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” he nodded.

Emily smiled, leaning to place a sweet kiss on his cheek. She wanted more, knew he did too, but that would do for now. They were outside; they didn’t want to suck face out in public. One day they would get some privacy and be able to share more quiet moments together. It would be worth the wait.

“We should probably get back.” She said.

“So soon?”

“We’re already gonna have to endure the K-I-S-S-I-N-G taunts.”

“I don't know; when Spencer and Penelope start singing it always makes me smile.” Jason said.

“Well that makes one of us. If we’re gonna be teased, I at least want to be kissed for it.”

“That’s fair.”

He kissed her hand as they headed back in the direction of home.

***

  



End file.
